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The White House has said it is considering a “tiered approach” in response to a drone attack that killed three US servicemembers. US President Biden has emphasized he does not seek a “wider war” in the Middle East.
US President Joe Biden on Tuesday said a decision had been made on the response to a drone attack that killed three US servicemembers in Jordan on Sunday.
The president said the decision had been made after consulting with his top advisors but he did not elaborate on what the response would entail.
The US has said “radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq” were behind the attack.
Asked if he held Iran responsible for Sunday’s deadly drone strike, Biden said, “I do hold them responsible in the sense that they are supplying the weapons to the people who did it.”
Speaking to reporters at the White House before leaving on a campaign trip to Florida, Biden said the US is “not looking for a wider war” in the Middle East nor confrontation with Iran.
Later Tuesday, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters aboard Air Force One that Biden was considering several options in response.
On Friday, Biden will travel to a military airbase near Washington to attend the “dignified transfer” of the bodies of the three servicemembers killed in Sunday’s attack.
“It’s very possible that what you’ll see is a tiered approach here, not just a single action but potentially multiple actions,” Kirby said.
Biden is facing pressure at home over a response to Iran’s backing of radical Islamist militias in the Middle East.
Republican hardliners are urging Biden to launch direct attacks on Iran, although the Democrat has so far given no indication that he would consider such a move.